Easy Things to Make and Sell for Money

Easy Things to Make and Sell for Money

Whether you need more money now, or to stash in your retirement savings for later, one quick way to to get cash is to find easy things to make and sell for money.

1. Making Printables For Downloading

For this first one, you will need a little bit of technical skill and creativity. However, anyone of any age that has just a little bit of both, can quickly make money with printables.

What are we talking about? Printables are anything that you create and deliver in a downloadable format over the internet that provides a valuble product to your customer. For example, you can set-up an Etsy (the makers market) store and sell crafty downloadable items such as:

• Sewing Patterns & Other Craft Patterns
• Checklists, Calendars & Organizing Sheets
• Coloring Books
• Note Cards & Invitations
• Business Cards
• Workbooks
• How to eBooks
• Meal Planners
• Pictures and Graphics

Printables are very popular! I have downloaded many helpful ones myself. As a result, there are endless amounts of websites that will teach you the step by step process to starting a printable business. Just Google “printables business” or go onto Pinterest and search for “how to sell printables” to start.

These websites will give you tips on how to find easy ways to create these printables, even if you do not have a graphic design background. There are services, like Canva, that make designing something very easy for just about anyone. Just remember to do a little research on what is trending and what is always a popular search, before you start the creation process.

Keep it Easy

If you are looking for quick and easy in this area, then stick with Etsy. If you want to turn your printables business into something bigger, you can look into starting your own Shopify store, or selling on your very own website. Just know that path will require much more customer service. Customer service has a habit of taking the “easy” out of an idea.

2. Selling Photos

It has never been easier to sell photos than now. Online publishing (this blog included) has created a never-ending need for unique, quality stock photography. As a result, there are many market places that need photographers to provide photos to sell. You will need to have a good camera for this one. Moreover, you need to know a little bit about taking a good photo.

However, there is a lot of information out there to get started with for free, so we include this option in our easy things to make and sell for money list.

3. Easy, Trending Crafts to Make and Sell for Money

This is another route where you can sell on Etsy, or you can find in-person craft fairs and markets in your local area to sell things quickly.

Popular & Trending Craft Sale Ideas:

• Jewelry – This is always a top selling category in any craft market space. There is a buyer for just about anything. Friends and family are often supportive of your creative expressions too. I have had friends that have sold jewelry at yoga studios and small businesses around town in addition to their online sales.
• Bath Bombs / Soaps / Lotion Bars – Make these pretty, colorful and appealing and they will sell easily, especially around the Holidays! Bath Bombs are easier to make than soaps and lotions. However, all of them are a great idea, and you can find very good, organic recipes online for just about anything these days.
• Clothing – Here are a few ideas with clothing.
  • Screen Printing: At one point, I joined a little creative art studio in town that rented access to their screen printing. I took lessons from them, and then made my own screen printed clothing to sell. I made several thousand dollars over that year selling these items. Moreover, it was a ton of fun! If you want to screen print – baby and kids clothes with cute prints sell well!
  • Knitting / Crocheting: If I can knit, you can too. I seem to have very little finger dexterity, even with years of piano lessons and hours and hours of typing each day! However, I can knit, and I enjoy it. It is therapeutic even! My mom taught me, and she does not do a lot of fancy knitting, but she has sold scarves and hats over the years. When she wears her creations, people see them and ask where she got them – easy sales for her.
• Toys – Sticking with the kids and babies theme, people are often coming up with easy to make kids and baby items to sell. This is an area where Printables are big too (see above).
• Stickers, Vinyls and Transfers – You can either make these and ship them, or you can create downloadable items for people to create themselves.

4. Sell Your Stuff

Next, it is time to embrace the Minimalism Trend and sell your stuff! This idea is not technically in the “make category.” However, you can still use your creativity and maker-skills with your current possessions.

Perhaps you have stuff you could refurbish and sell. Ideas for refurbishing include furniture, watches, jewelry, antiques, clothing items and accessories. You can also just sell things “as-is.” That is easy for sure.

Easy Places to Sell Your Stuff You Made for Money:

• Ebay
• Etsy
• Craigslist
• Local Facebook Buy/Sell/Trade Groups – search in your local area.
• Mercari – A new one, but gaining popularity.
• ThredUp – (for clothes and accessories)
• eBid
• Bonanza – I like their tag “Find everything but the ordinary.”

There are others, just look around and see what market place fits your items best.

5. Easy Things to Make and Sell for Money from the Homestead

If you like getting your hands dirty, then this idea will be easy for you. I personally do not think gardening is easy. However, I have a lot of friends and family that tell me I am wrong, and that gardening is very easy! Then, if you can grow it, people will buy it.

Produce

It is a very popular and happy trend that people prefer, fresh, local produce. Just put a notice up on Facebook that you have tomatoes to sell, and you will easily sell them. Same with chicken eggs and dairy items. I have purchased eggs from neighbors, and I have even purchased chickens.

Poultry and Dairy

There are places that will pluck and package chickens for you if you want to raise and sell them for meat. I had a friend do this too, and she informed me it was not expensive to get the chickens ready to sell with a local butcher she found. I live in the Midwest. However, I think this is a trend everywhere, so I add even “chicken raising” to the easy money category.

Plants

Growing plants to sell can also be easy, but I would not say fast. Plants are certainly trending though. So, if you have a little more time and a green thumb, growing and selling plants and starter plants is a great idea. You could focus on house plants, outdoor flowers, or even vegetable garden plants.

Gardening Tools & Planters

Are you a Crafty Homesteader? Then there are lots of easy things to make and sell for money here. Here are a few ideas:

• Decorated Planters & Pots
• Garden Markers for Outdoor Plants & Smaller Ones for Herb Gardens
• Gardening tools such as knee pads
• Plant Hangers – Wood and Cloth (Macrame is back!)
• Seed Packets
• Compost – I make my own. I don’t sell mine, but you could! People want good compost. I use this tumbler, and recommend it as a good starter for making compost.

6. Your Plasma

Yep, there is always this option for a fast, easy way to make money. Technically, you make it, and you can sell it. Just find a plasma center near you. Then, make sure you qualify to sell your plasma before showing up.

7. Your Opinions

You also make your own opinions. So, we will give brief nod to Survey Companies in our easy things to make and sell for money. Just do these in your spare time to make a little extra cash.

I used to participate in Pinecone Research, and I actually did make some good extra cash with them! It was enjoyable too, but then I aged into a not as needed age category and my survey options shrunk. Eventually, I didn’t find it worth my time. However, every survey company is different and has different clients, so you can find one good for you to make some spending money.

Take a look at this article that reviews the top survey companies. It does a pretty good job of breaking it all down.

Conclusions on Easy Things to Make and Sell for Money

Both online and in person, there has never been an easier time to find easy things to make and sell for money. Everything we presented here has very little investment money to get started. Mostly, your costs will be any materials needed to make your items to sell.

Simply, find what inspires you and get to it!